Last Summer I decided that I was going to really “go for it” and make myself a classroom website. I researched TONS of free sites, made a few sites and even kicked off the year with one.

However, they all fell short and did not give me everything I wanted. Some sites only gave me a small amount of space for pictures… which I used up by week two of school… (whoops!)

And they didn’t give me everything my parents wanted.

My parents wanted:

Homework Lists

Classroom Contacts

A Classroom Calendar

and

The PICTURES! (they wanted to be able to print them!)

So… where did that leave me?

SHUTTERFLY!

Yes, the picture site.

It’s AMAZING for classroom websites.

Let me show you why.

Shutterfly allows you to invite your members which means that all of the pictures and information is secure. Only the members of your site can access it.

It allows you to set up a calendar, a volunteer list, class list and contacts and pictures!

Every week, I would quickly log on to my account and add a “journal entry” and type in our Spelling Words, Words to Know and our Bible Verse of the week. My parents could then easily access it no matter where they were! (It even has a phone ap!)

It also has a nice feature where when you change or add something it will ask you if you want to send out an email reminder to all of your contacts. This ensured that all of my parents got all of the information they needed in a timely fashion.

7 Comments

This.looks.awesome! Ahhh…I have been wanting to set up a blog/website. Last year was my first year teaching first grade (after a long hiatus as a stay-at-home-momma) and I was quite overwhelmed! Maybe this year I will have the energy to tackle this…especially if it’s as easy as you say! 🙂 Thank you for sharing!

Dear Kristin,I just started following your blog and am glad I found you! I also teach in a Christian school. I have taught for 26 years and have only been in Christian schools throughout my career. I teach first grade and love it. I have also taught K-4, K-5 and 2nd grade. I love your classroom website. I have one on TeacherWeb and have had it for about three years. I will probably renew it because I have poured hours and hours into it and have over 100 student learning activity links and 100+ teacher resource links. If you want to visit it, my website is:http://teacherweb.com/TN/LancasterChristianAcademy/MrsStevenson/apt1.aspx I hope you have a great summer! In Christ, Evelyn

7 Comments

This.looks.awesome! Ahhh…I have been wanting to set up a blog/website. Last year was my first year teaching first grade (after a long hiatus as a stay-at-home-momma) and I was quite overwhelmed! Maybe this year I will have the energy to tackle this…especially if it’s as easy as you say! 🙂 Thank you for sharing!

Dear Kristin,I just started following your blog and am glad I found you! I also teach in a Christian school. I have taught for 26 years and have only been in Christian schools throughout my career. I teach first grade and love it. I have also taught K-4, K-5 and 2nd grade. I love your classroom website. I have one on TeacherWeb and have had it for about three years. I will probably renew it because I have poured hours and hours into it and have over 100 student learning activity links and 100+ teacher resource links. If you want to visit it, my website is:http://teacherweb.com/TN/LancasterChristianAcademy/MrsStevenson/apt1.aspx I hope you have a great summer! In Christ, Evelyn

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Hi! I'm Kristen and I have been an early childhood teacher for 13 years. I currently teach kindergarten at a private Christian school in Austin, Texas. My passion is creating fun, engaging and inspiring lessons for my students and then sharing them with you! I strive to integrate science and social studies into all aspects of my classroom. I hope you enjoy my blog. Please let me know if you have questions or comments.